SYDNEY – Eco-friendly managers and staff are the key to making a retailer go green, according to a study listing 15 of the world’s top eco-friendly retailers in Europe, North America, Asia and Australia.

NORWAY – The Philippine and Norwegian governments will forge a bilateral agreement soon to lift the ban on au pair deployment to Norway. This was announced by Philippine ambassador to Oslo, Elizabeth Buensuceso, at an au pair conference dubbed, “Daughter of Globalization: An au pair conference”, held in this city.

RP races to secure rice supply for 2010 MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines could import as much as three million tons of rice next year as the world’s largest buyer of the grain, worried about a potential spike in prices, moves quickly to secure supplies.

Social Security System (SSS) President and Chief Executive Officer Romulo Neri recently said that the SSS would like to ask Congress to find ways to increase the contribution of members, in order to expand services and secure the financial stability of the fund.

The proportion of families who experienced involuntary hunger increased nationwide by 1.3 points—the equivalent of an additional 300,000 families—after the onslaught of Tropical Storms “Ondoy” and “Pepeng,” according to a special Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey.

LOS ANGELES: Poor sleep can be dangerous for those whose jobs require quick reactions, according to a study by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin. The researchers found a link between sleep deprivation and information-integration, a process that relies heavily on instantaneous, gut-feeling decisions.

The number of Filipinos who experienced hunger increased by about 300,000 after tropical storm Ondoy and Typhoon Pepeng hit the country, the Social Weather Stations (SWS) reported.

Franchising seems to be immune from the global financial crisis, with some firms expanding even during the economic turmoil, officials of the Philippine Franchise Association (PFA) told The Manila Times in an exclusive roundtable interview on Monday.

While educated Filipinos were vital to the Philippine economy, the World Bank noted that most of them were unemployed.

CEBU, Philippines – To ensure that every child fully enjoys his/her rights, The Department of Interior and Local Government is urging local government units to include children’s rights as a priority item in their Comprehensive Development Plan.

MANILA, Philippines – Fewer Filipino nurses are likely to get employed in Saudi Arabia in the coming months with the government there imposing stricter requirement for the hiring of foreign workers.

FRANKFURT (AP) — Although it is too early to say the crisis is over, it is time to withdraw some of the policy measures that supported the financial system through the credit crunch, the European Central Bank president Jean-Claude Trichet said.

MANILA, Philippines – Two Philippine companies, Petron Corp. and Ayala Land Inc., made it to the top 30 in the 2009 Asian Sustainability Rating (ASR) report released by CSR Asia.

THE $6-billion call-center and business-process outsourcing (BPO) industry formally launched its own advocacy group during a press briefing in Quezon City on Tuesday.

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Despite the record fiscal blowout which most analysts believe will shoot past P300 billion by the end of the year, which prompted the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to place the country back on its danger watchlist, economic officials insisted yesterday the current budget deficit level is not something to be alarmed about.

This outsider was surprised not so much by the fact that Hermogenes Ebdane Jr. has declared his intention to run for the presidency as by the fact that he has done so under the banner of the Lapiang Manggagawa (LM, Labor Party). There have, in fact, been two LMs, neither of which seems to have…

Gilbert Teodoro’s proclamation as the ruling Lakas-Kampi-CMD’s nominee for the presidential elections in May 2010 marked the end of the elimination process and ushered in the political equivalent of the Final Four.

Just a few days in the defense office, with Defense chief Norberto Gonzales seated, and already the military is engaging in partisan politics,directing warnings to the electorate against voting for communists this coming 2010 elections and campaigning actively against party list groups with leftist leanings.

BENCHMARK short-term interest rates inched lower across all tenors Monday. This as the Bureau of Treasury announced that the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) is ready to sign the guarantee agreement for the Philippines’ planned Samurai bond offering. National Treasurer Roberto Tan said the signing “may happen this year.”

150 people hospitalized after eating cheese sandwich in an office party.” “30 school children in Bohol die after eating street food.” Like terrorists, deadly bacteria and toxins are waiting to strike you. Brought to you by your favorite waiter and sold at your local carinderia, these invisible, tasteless microbes may be hiding in the buko…

MANILA, Philippines – Filipino consumers as well as borrowers continued to enjoy lower interest rates as the estimated interest rate pass-through improved steadily as of end-October this year, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said.

MANILA, Philippines – Even with just a few months left in her term, President Arroyo’s performance and trust ratings continue to dip, according to the latest Pulse Asia survey on the country’s top national officials.

An International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission currently in the country has placed the country on the multilateral financing institutions watchlist amid the government’s falling revenue collections and the widening budget deficit.

THE November 2009 results of the first Manila Standard Today Poll show Benigno Aquino III as the primary choice of registered voters nationwide for the highest national elective post, and three weeks before the filing of certificates of candidacy with the Commission on Elections. Beyond the race, it is important to know the rationale behind…

THE Ombudsman has scolded a former woman judge for trying to put down the image of the Philippines in its fight against corruption.

MANILA, Philippines – A Filipino has received international recognition for his innovative effort in educating poor children. Efren Peñaflorida, who started the “Kariton Klassroom” to bring education to poor children, has been named CNN Hero of the Year, the cable news network announced yesterday.

TUCP  Statement at the Meeting with International Monetary Fund (IMF) held on 23 November 2009 at the IMF Conference Room, BSP, Pasay City, PHILIPPINES We thank IMF for inviting the TUCP to this meeting. We note the Communiqué of the International Monetary and Financial Committee of the Board of Governors of the IMF released on…

DAVAO CITY, Philippines – The House of Representatives has no plans of passing a bill proposing the banning of aerial spray in the country within its term and opposing parties would have to wait for the next Congress to push for it.

MANILA, Philippines – Employees will be receiving their bonus on top of their 13th month pay this year as local firms report full recovery from the global financial crisis, the Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP) said.